Friday, August 29, 2008

Have you ever been stuck on something? A thought enters your brain and it will not go away. Sometimes that can drive you crazy! You keep recycling it....over and over again! Maybe it's the lyrics of a song, a comment from a friend, or something you read. A yellow 'post it' note forms in your mind and marks the moment. I had one of those sticky moments in a Bible study called Downpour by James MacDonald.

I got stuck as I read these words:

Sin In The Mirror: A Picture Of BrokennessWhoa...Sin in the Mirror! Who wants to look at that? Pictures of Brokenness...that's not pretty, is it? I didn't want share my photos in the family scrapbook! Who does??? ( I would rather take the picture so I don't have to B in it? As I am posting this, it made me wonder about you.... Are you the one always holding the camera?)

I tried to process the recycling message of 'Sin in the Mirror: A Picture of Brokenness'. Could I just slip that into the trash? Maybe no one would notice. Yeah right... if you know God a little, and that's about as much as I would claim, you know He doesn't miss a thing! God has a different way of dealing with trash and bad photos. You might say He is the first Scrap-booker. He uses everything in His book and it all turns out for good. He wouldn't let me remove my 'post it' note. Like my husband, He is always giving me instructions . : ) Adding to my list... Sometimes I do the additions and sometimes I just keep them on the list. Do good intentions count?My material list for His add on project: wood, glue, and lots of pieces of broken mirror. It was a long process to complete His assigned work. I thought I knew what He wanted to do when I started the project. HA! After I saw my brokenness, He would let everyone else stand in front of the mirror and check out how they looked too. The photo above, is step one of the project. As I looked into the mirror, I certainly saw my brokenness. My image was fragmented. I was totally messed up! Not exactly the glamor shot I dreamed of as a child. This picture would take more than photo shop to fix. Did I really have three eyes in the picture? How could I have three eyes and and still not see clearly? I was stunned looking at the shattered pieces.

God was watching me view the negatives. Evidently, I gazed too long at my image . Here is what God said as I was looking at Bin the mirror:

"Barbara, quit looking at your broken self and see what I have done." Startled by His words, I got off the floor....Oh my....now look at the picture He showed me......I will leave you a 'Post it' note photo in Part 3 The Girl In The Mirror soon. It is worthy of a look. Stop by and SEE the finished project. He makes everything beautiful in its time!

Monday, August 25, 2008

Sometimes we don't like what we see, especially when we look up close. It's not just the fine lines and creases that bother us, although we try to our best to cover them up. As we move closer to the mirror, we see so much more than our face! We see the reflection of our lives. Some of us get stuck looking at ourselves. It's not a pretty picture we see. "How did this happen?" we ask. What in the world was I thinking??? Or maybe I should say, Not thinking!

Do you remember being asked this question when you were young?

What do you want to "B" when you grow up?

Maybe your grown up picture didn't develop into the look you dreamed of. The glamorous woman, "The Girl In The Mirror" by Norman Rockwell, hoped she would B has yet to appear. In fact, that dream faded from view years ago.

Now what???

Could it B that you grew up looking in the wrong mirror?

God often speaks to me when I am in front of the mirror. This week I will share some of His words . Stop by and take a look...you might see yourself! :)

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Meet B, the turtle of light. When you first see B, you notice the unique pattern cut into her shell. She is not a 'paper doll turtle' that eventually wears out. She's a real piece of work fashioned by a Master Artist. To be honest, I have to tell you this aboutB. She is often slow and dull in her understanding of things. Turtles from ages past are known for B' ing like that. It has taken her a long time to understand what to do with her cut outs.

Maybe you can relate to B's condition. Do you ever wonder what you are supposed to do with your cut outs? We all have them. Most of us try to cover them up, but God wants to use them.

After sitting on the log basking in the sun, B can see clearly now. She thought she wanted to look like other turtles. Their cut outs were not as noticeable as hers. She looked like she had been the target practice turtle with all of her holes. She now knows that she was B'ing shot at for years and her covering was like a paper doll turtle. It did not last. B sees her "holy" shell in a different light today. For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 2 Cor 4:66

A "holy" shell shines bright in dark places! You were 'Made to shine""B" His Girl

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Last week I was on a family reunion vacation in Kentucky of all places. We had a wonderful time! I had no part in planning any of the trip, but I had to smile when we arrived. The name of the resort was Green Turtle Bay! Talk about turtles... it was a turtle girl's oasis!

In the picture on the left, you can see a multitude of turtle heads sticking out of the water. They were looking at our family. "Did they bring us something to eat?" the turtles wondered. As the bread touched the water, it was like a turtle army swimming to the table. If turtles can talk : ), they must have told their friends. Turtles were coming from all directions for a taste of fresh bread.

As we left Green Turtle Bay to return home Saturday, we had two loaves of bread left over from our week. I decided to give my bread(turtle food: ) to the children vacationing next door. I wanted them to experience the delight in breaking bread with others.

It is always about sharing our bread with others. I saw a sign this week that said: Don't count your blessings, share them! Share the bread of life today.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Meet B, the Handmade Turtle. My son, Justin was the potter of this masterpiece. If you look closely at her right flipper, you will see the white glue line. You see, B the Handmade Turtle is broken. She lived a short time with us before she fell.

What do you do with a broken turtle? I guess I could have thrown her away, but that thought never crossed my mind. My son used his hands to shape B. His signature is on B's backside even though you can't see it in this picture. She is a one of a kind turtle girl, a treasured possession.

We are all like B, handmade originals loved by the one who created us. The Lord is the Potter. He is continually shaping us as it seems best to Him. Most of the time we do not understand what He is doing as we are spinning around the potter's wheel. God is asking B to trust that His Hands are on the wheel, regardless of what is happening in her life. It may feel out of control, but it's not. He is asking you to trust where you are in life today also.

The song you learned as a child, complete with hand motions is still true. He's Got the Whole World in His Hands. Sing it with confidence today!"B" His Girl

Friday, August 1, 2008

Turtle Tracks! I saw these in Naples, FL last weekend. This turtle was not stuck in the sand or in a shell. She was walking.

If there is anything that is keeping you from walking the walk, you need to 'let it go.' Tim McGraw has a song called "Let It Go". It talks about standing at the crossroads trying to buy back the pieces of my soul. "Choices and mistakes they all know my name" the songs says. The song declares "Today, I'm gonna keep on walkin'. I'm gonna hold my head up high. I'm gonna leave the past behind. I know I've been forgiven."

Sometimes we need to be reminded to keep going. Today is a gift from God. Thank you Lord for your mercy we found new this morning. Don't miss walking with Him. He has plans to prosper you, not to harm you, to give you hope and a future.